Dr. McKechnie is the Interim Pastor at Sardis Presbyterian Church. Dave reveals, "I wake up enthusiastic about each new day-anticipating new things happening in my life, in the lives of my family, and in the lives of other members of the Body of Christ." Join us at Sardis Presbyterian Church for worship at 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. each Sunday.

Friday, May 23, 2014

A Time to Remember

Though it seems to have grown out of remembrance services for Union and
Confederate soldiers who died during the Civil War, no one knows for sure where
Memorial Day started. Over two dozen
towns have laid claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day. President Lyndon Johnson issued a
proclamation on May 26, 1966 identifying Waterloo, New York as the town where
it all started, but truth is, no one really knows for certain.

One thing is for sure, most Americans see
Memorial Day as the kick-off to summer and best of all, a three day
weekend.Nothing wrong with a three day
weekend, but I wonder how many of us will actually pause in the midst of
picnics and travel to take a moment to remember and honor those who have given
their all in service to their country?

In his book, A Goodly Heritage, Dr. Jennings Reid, with the help of John
McCaskill, compiled a list all the known war veterans who were Sardis
members. The list goes all the way back
to the War of 1812 and ends with Vietnam. The list was complete at the time of
publishing, but is not exhaustive as several Sardis members not listed also
served in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan. There are two young men pictured in Dr. Reid’s book, S/Sgt. Julian
Sidney Miller, Jr.and Lt. Richard
Preston Peoples. Both were killed in World
War II.Both were so young.

Friends at Sardis started a class in their
honor and called it the Miller-Peoples Class.It was a popular class where many lifelong friendships were forged.The class continued for decades, but as
time moved on, members grew older and soon many passed on to Glory Land. The class eventually dwindled in size to
only a handful, but they never lost the love they knew for each other and their
remembrance of those two young men. Not
long ago the class officially ended as the few remaining faithful migrated to
other adult classes. The Miller –
Peoples Class now lives only in memory.

I think about those two young men every
Memorial Day. I think about all those
young men and women who answered the call of duty, served our country, and gave
their lives for our freedoms. Regardless of your political leanings, I
hope you will pause among the hot dogs, burgers, and potato salad and remember
why we have a three day weekend called Memorial Day.

Jesus said, “No one has
greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”(John 15:13 NRSV).Those words seem to echo to me through the
years come each Memorial Day.Is there
someone you are especially thinking of this Memorial Day?

1 comment:

Thanks for remembering. Someone asked me recently how Miller- Peoples got their name as well as the former Miller Memorial Education Building (1938)which was named in memoryof Dr.

Thanks for remembering . Someone recently asked me how Miller-Peoples Sunday School Class got its name and also how the former Miller Memorial Education Building got its name. The Miller Memorial Education building was built in 1938 and named for Dr. R. G. Miller, pastor of Sardis (ARP) Church from 1887-1925. Pictures of the buildings are in the Historical Room.